Sunrise
by Moofy Miser
Summary: Basically I got nostalgic as shit about some old fanfics I used to write and decided to do them. Everything in this fanfic is assuming pre-season 3 canon material, mainly cause I'm too lazy to update myself on the plot of this show after so many years. Either way though, I hope you all enjoy, and tell me what you think!


Prologue:

Departure

The sound of hooves echoed across the sleeping homes of Ponyville. A hollow wind blew between the buildings, catching the hood of a cloaked pony, who made her way through the empty streets under the cover of the night. The wind passed by again, sending a chill down her spine. She reached up, pulling her cloak down over her harder, proceeding onwards. As she trotted down the empty streets, she took the time to look up to the round walls of Canterlot. Doubt, that's what she was feeling, she realized. What if she was wrong? She'd been wrong before, about many things, this could easily be one of them. Though, she hoped she was wrong… about everything.

Twilight took a deep breath, continuing forward. She wasn't going to reach Canterlot by standing there. As she trotted toward Ponyville's exit, she pulled out one of her old books, looking it over. She was exhausted from hours of study, checking, double checking. She needed a reminder of what she was doing, in case she had somehow forgotten. Despite having glossed over the details a thousand times at least, she couldn't be too sure. Her horn glowed, holding each page firmly down against the wind. She held the book just below her nose, looking down to read as she walked, translating the ancient markings that sprawled its thin paper. At this point she knew the text, front to back, by heart she'd read it so many times. She motioned to turn the page, closing her eyes to hear the crackling crunch of the thousand year old binding holding the brittle book together. Her eyes moved back and forth, scanning over every character and picture, taking them in again. She began to turn the next page.

"Whatcha got there?" The sudden voice startled Twilight. She jumped back in shock, the page she had been grasping with her magic getting torn from its bindings, flapping away from her in the breeze, landing at the hooves of a familiar pink friend. Pinkie picked up the loose parchment, looking it over, "Seems like a lot of gibberish to me." Twilight's horn glowed as she removed the page carefully from her friend's hoof, gingerly tucking it back into its place within the book, before replacing it in a satchel at her side.

"It's not gibberish, Pinkie. Why are you out here so late?" Twilight asked. She had an aura of "all business" around her.

"Well, I'm following you of course!" Pinkie chimed. Twilight looked at her tired eyed.

"Why… why are you following me?" Pinkie narrowed her eyes, getting uncomfortably close to Twilight.

"Why are _you_ heading out so late at night?" She questioned. Twilight froze, the two staring at each other for a moment, until Twilight caved, pulling down the hood on her cloak.

"I'm heading to Canterlot to… check something." She said reluctantly, not wanting to state her intentions outright. Pinkie continued to stare, though, intent on getting a full answer. Twilight sighed, gesturing for Pinkie to walk with her as she pulled the book back out, holding it out in front of the two of them. "I have a feeling that something bad is coming our way. I'm not sure what yet, but this book has been giving me some clues." Twilight looked to Pinkie, finding her listening intently. She returned her gaze to the book, turning the pages, "This whole thing is littered with stories from someone a long time ago, of their adventures across Equestria, like a field journal of some kind. It seemed normal fare for a long time, but about halfway through," She flipped through the pages, stopping on a simple illustration. Two alicorns stood across from each other, one white, small, the other one taller, a shadowy, sinister coat covering its body. "He begins to talk about this mare here, Marlow. From what I can gather, the two went head to head a lot," She continued flipping through the book, stopping occasionally to focus on another illustration, "There were other that joined him to fight her and by the looks of it," Twilight slowed her flipping, showing the number of ponies being shown decreasing slowly with each subsequent illustration, "Until finally," She flipped towards the last pages, when just two of them remained, turning the page one more time, "it was just him."

"So they were…" Pinkie looked to Twilight, as if expecting an answer that was brighter than the truth. Twilight took a deep breath.

"It's more than likely that they didn't survive trying to battle Marlow." She said, flipping the page, "The pony in the journal knew that there was no way he would be able to outdo her magic. He searched Equestria, and was bestowed with some sort of spear that allowed him to seal her away. The two clashed and he got lucky, managing to use the spear's magic before she could do any serious harm." Twilight flipped toward the end page, where the two were greeted by a solid page of text. "He talks about doing the same to himself in the end of the book, sure that it wasn't the end." She turned to the final page, finding a masterfully painted picture of a carved slate in a statue garden, "He's hinting to where he sealed himself away. I took a look at the carving on the slate more closely. It's the same text as what's written in the book. All it said was 'Millenium'."

"He was a thousand years old?!" Pinkie exclaimed, "I didn't think he would be young, but I wasn't expecting him to be as old as Equestria itself!" Twilight shook her head.

"N-no, that's not what it means. At least not what I think it means. The seal is fading, they never last forever, they just give everyone more time to deal with the problem. It makes sense. By sealing her away, it forces her to start from square one. He wants us to wake him up… I think." Twilight closed the book, putting it away, laughing at herself. "Or I could be getting worked up over nothing ."

"No, this all sound about right!" Pinkie said, "The hero, faces a giant villain and fails, so he sleeps to be awoken when the time is right! Sounds _mysterious_ and _spooky_ to me!" She bounced along beside Twilight with apparent joy. "One thing doesn't quite make sense, though? Why are you so sure that tonight is the night to wake him?"

"The Sunrise Festival," Twilight answered with confidence, "all of my research points to a connection to the Sunrise Festival. It was first started a thousand years ago, coinciding with what I've read. It's just too perfect to be a coincidence. If any part is correct it has to be this." Twilight looked long and hard at Canterlot in the distance, "Pinkie, do you really think I'm right?" Pinkie stopped bouncing, returning to a slow trot.

"Of course. I wouldn't be here if I didn't. I'd be back home with Gummy, all snuggled up and comfy under a blanket!" She said. Twilight rolled her eyes at her pink friend as they came up on the train station connecting Ponyville to the rest of Equestria. The two sat in silence, taking in the night. Even Pinkie took the time to close her eyes and enjoy the silence for a change. The pale beams of the moon cast shimmering light on the cold steel rails just in front of them. The sound of wind through the trees rushed through their ears as they sat, patiently awaiting the earliest morning train.

"Pinkie?"

"Hm?"

"What if I'm wrong?"

"You won't be." It was a simple answer, but it was the one she needed to hear. The unicorn and the earth pony sat in peace a little while longer, until they were finally interrupted by the chattering engine of a train approaching. The massive locomotive screeched to a halt, the doors that lined its side pulling open. Twilight stood up, Pinkie following in suit, the two groggily treading across the platform and onto the train, choosing their seats. The doors slid shut, and just like that, they were off.

Twilight was right, that's something I knew for sure. Pinkie did as well, but she had her own ways of knowing. As the moon slowly slid down past the horizon, they couldn't possibly have anticipated the amount of trouble they had just caused themselves. As the sun rose from the opposite edge of Equestria, so did the beams of a new day, and with it new challenges, and tests. With that sunrise, I would come to realize, was the dawn of my new start, my second chance. It was time for my new chronicle to be written.


End file.
